I”ve lived in the City of Clearlake since 1980. I believe our City is finally moving forward. I would like to share with you some of the positive things I see happening.
At the Planning Commission meeting on Sept. 18, 2007, Dale Neiman, Clearlake City Administrator, outlined six priorities for the City.
First, he wants to extend the Redevelopment Agency for 11 more years. Redevelopment has been very badly managed in this city, but it can be a wonderful tool for growth. Dale is highly experienced with redevelopment from his nine years as a City Manager in Fortuna.
As part of this extension, the city”s General Plan needs to be updated. The groundwork for this process has been laid out in the Clearlake Vision Task Force Report, put together by 50 City volunteers with diverse backgrounds. It represents a consensus of recommendations for the future of Clearlake. This report will aid Dale, the Planning Commission, the City Council, and the community in updating the General Plan. The General Plan components will go through a public hearing process before they are finalized, giving everyone another opportunity to have their voices heard.
By the way, copies of the Clearlake Vision Task Force Report are available at City Hall”s front desk for free or on the Web at www.clearlakevisiontaskforce.wikispaces.com.
The reason that we need to extend the Redevelopment Agency, brings us to the second priority: Street Improvements. Dale wants to establish an Assessment District Program with a Revolving Loan Fund to get more streets paved. We currently have two applications for street districts which will soon be processed. They will serve as demonstration projects to show the citizens of Clearlake what can be done.
The third priority for our City is to proceed with selling the Airport and Austin resort properties for retail, commercial, and tourism related developments. When sold, these profits will be returned to the Redevelopment Budget.
The fourth priority is to develop a first-time home Buyer Program for moderate income families using the Redevelopment Agency”s housing funds.
The fifth priority is to improve the City”s image. This involves making Code Enforcement more effective and developing programs for litter clean up and weed abatement.
And lastly, the sixth priority for the City and Staff is the development of a tree ordinance and a Resource Protection Zone strategy.
Here are a few other points I would like to make. Dale and Mike Vivrette, the City Treasurer, reduced this year”s General Fund budget by $927,000.00. We started this year over $1 million in debt. Now we”re only $105,000 in debt.
And the Redevelopment Agency? It started the year with a zero balance. Now it has $923,000 in its budget for street improvements. Like I said, “I”m seeing a lot of progress in our city.
Some people have said that they think we”re overpaying Dale. I would disagree. I think he”s earning every dollar we”re paying him.
And in conclusion, I would like to ask everyone in the City of Clearlake a question, “What have you done in the last year to make our City a better place?”
Editor”s Note: Jim Scholz is a resident of Clearlake.
